1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the production of fuel blendstocks and chemical products. More specifically, the present invention relates to a process for the simultaneous production of chemical feedstocks and fuel blendstocks such as jet fuel from unsaturated and polyunsaturated vegetable oils and/or algal oils. Still more specifically, the present invention relates to a process for the simultaneous production of chemical feedstocks and fuel blendstocks in the absence of thermal or catalytic cracking of carbon chains into numerous small fragments and/or without reduction of ester moieties.
2. Background of the Invention
The ability to exchange alkylidene units of unsaturated vegetable oils presents unique opportunities for synthesis of desirable-chain-length compositions. The exchange reaction employed is known as olefin metathesis. Olefin metathesis can be catalyzed by a variety of transition metal compounds that can form a carbene intermediate with the alkylidene fragment. A description of olefin metathesis may be found in the text Olefin Metathesis by K. J. Ivin (Academic Press, New York, 1983).
The cross-metathesis of unsaturated fatty esters with alpha-olefins has been known for some time. As described by E. Verkuijlen et al. (Reel. Tray. Chim. Pays-Bas 1977, 96(8), M86-M90), co-metathesis of methyl oleate and 3-hexene gives 3-dodecene and methyl 9-dodecenoate. Recent patent applications address the use of the unsaturated ester portion of the metathesis products of vegetable oils. For example, in U.S. Patent Application 2005/0154221 A1, Lysenko et al. disclose conversion of short monounsaturated ester product to an aldehyde ester and subsequently to amino esters or hydroxyl esters, which are useful polymer intermediates. In PCT Application PCT/US2007/021931, Abraham et al. disclose conversion of the unsaturated ester to an amino ester.
A disadvantage of conventional metathesis processes is that the feedstock is generally converted into a product with limited usefulness. Accordingly, there is a need in the art for methods integrating cross-metathesis and/or self-metathesis with processing whereby cyclic difunctional monomers useful for the synthesis of polyurethane, polyamide, and other valuable polymers can be produced, as well as desired distributions of alkenes and unsaturated fatty esters that can be converted to desired fuel components. In applications, the method provides for conversion of substantially all of a biomass feedstock to high-value fuel blendstock components and chemical intermediaries.